‘We need to get in the car,’ I said.
Suddenly, a vehicle came screeching into the parking lot from the road. Katie sprang back, and I spun on my heel as Hugo’s truck roared up beside ours and slammed to a halt. Hugo and Esmeralda flew out of the truck. I didn’t like the look on either of their faces.
‘We’re being tracked,’ said Hugo.
Three motorcycles rumbled in behind him. James, Vincent, and Kris leapt off. Their faces were tense as they spanned out and searched the sky. Hugo scowled at me.
‘How did you—’ I began.
‘A discussion for later,’ said Ezzie. She tilted her head and sniffed the air. ‘We must get out of the open.’ She gestured to a thin line of trees running parallel to the parking lot, just outside the glow of lights from the station. ‘It will reduce their advantage.’
‘Can’t we just outdrive them?’ asked James.
‘Only to have them follow us to the next stop and attack there?’ hissed Ezzie. Her eyes glittered dangerously. ‘No, we must deal with them here.’
Katie suddenly chucked her soda into the trash and whirled on us with a half-crazed expression. ‘Are you serious? You guys believe all this stuff, too? I can’t even … it’s like some freaking shared delusion!’
‘There is no time for this, Katie Lewis,’ snapped Ezzie, flinging open the door of Hugo’s truck. Her hazel eyes flickered silver. ‘You are not Roma. They will leave you alone. Stay here and do not open these doors.’
The color faded from Katie’s cheeks. ‘Josephine …’
I grabbed her hand. ‘Just do what Ms Lucian says.’
‘But—’
‘And stay low,’ I said as I closed the door after her.
We hurried into the trees, Esmeralda leading the way and the Corsis bringing up the rear. My heart pounded. Marksmen were the ones equipped to kill these things, not us. And Esmeralda, though intimidating, was human, not gargoyle. I said a quick prayer under my breath.
We crouched behind a group of shrubs. Ezzie sniffed the air again, and I sensed her frustration. I knew she retained bits of her old shadow creature abilities, but I didn’t know how well they worked.
‘I cannot tell how many,’ Ezzie whispered. ‘Two, I believe.’
Hugo reached down and wrapped his fingers around a fallen branch the size of a baseball bat. He caught Ezzie’s look. ‘Yeah, I know. It won’t kill ’em, but it’ll still hurt.’
James, Kris, and Vincent found their own pieces of wood. We waited. I kept anxious eyes on the truck, praying that Katie would stay put. Ezzie leaned forward in her crouch, fingers splayed wide against the ground in a posture that reminded me of Sebastian. I clutched the knife tighter.
Ezzie closed her eyes and took in one smooth breath. Then, her eyes snapped open. She pointed with both hands, at two different trees directly above us. A wild snarl erupted from a cluster of branches. Something dropped to the ground. Ezzie shoved me aside.
The thing hissed, shuffling into view. I cringed in disgust. A grotesque. It was at least the size of a horse. A body and head like some medieval serpent, with black liquid dripping from its venomous-looking fangs. It scrambled closer, moving on multiple legs.
From out of the darkness, a winged creature slammed into Hugo from behind. He kicked at the beast as James bashed its scaly head with his branch. Kris and Vincent jumped into the fray, but my attention snapped immediately back to the shadowen in front of us.
Ezzie made a snarling sound, and inky mist appeared around her body. The creature lunged. Ezzie reappeared in another clump of mist several feet away. The grotesque roared in fury, its solid silver eyes gleaming, as it whirled around. It backed me up against a tree.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Esmeralda move into view. The creature reared back like a coiled snake. As it went for my head, I ducked and rolled to the side. With accuracy I’d learned over years of Circe training, I tossed the knife in Ezzie’s direction. She caught it and stabbed the creature, right in the middle of the back. The blade buried itself in the grotie’s flesh, all the way to the handle. The creature shuddered and dropped to the ground.
‘Ezzie!’ yelled Hugo.
Ms Lucian spun and aimed my knife at the other grotesque. It screeched and went down. Hugo wasted no time. He yanked the blade free from the creature’s wing and plunged it into the thing’s scaled chest.
Both shadowen collapsed, dead.
I leaned against the tree, gasping for breath. Hugo pried my knife free from the winged grotesque just as its body solidified into stone. Within seconds, both shadow creatures became nothing more than statues lying on the leaf-covered ground.
‘Is everyone okay?’ Hugo asked.
Suddenly, panic gripped me. ‘Katie!’
I rushed back to the truck. I could see her tear-stained face pressed against the window. I wrestled open the door, and she stumbled out, shaking all over. She stared at me with enormous eyes.
‘I believe it,’ she whimpered, clutching my arms. ‘I believe all of it.’
Then she was sick all over the tops of my shoes.
*
James and Kris hid the bodies of the grotesques in the brush, while Hugo supervised. I waited anxiously next to the car, with Katie by my side. She took small sips from a water bottle James had given her. Her face was pale, and she was unusually quiet.
Hugo emerged from the trees, wiping his hands off on his jeans. The others followed behind. His face grew darker as he approached us, and he sized me up with one long, penetrating stare. I met his gaze, unblinking, though inside, I felt close to crumbling.
‘How much does she know?’ Hugo asked me.
‘Everything,’ I replied.
Hugo paused long enough to give a definitive huff. Then he turned to Katie and held out his hand. ‘Well Katie, I guess you’re in.’
Vincent’s mouth gaped open.
James grabbed Hugo’s shoulder. ‘I don’t think that’s a good—’
‘No arguments,’ said Hugo brusquely. ‘If Josephine trusts her with our secrets, then so do I. Katie Lewis, consider yourself diddikoi from this point forward.’
‘Friend of Gypsies,’ I said, for her benefit.
Katie shook Hugo’s hand with the confidence of someone handling a snake.
‘How did you know we were following you?’ I asked.
‘It was Ezzie,’ he answered, watching as Ms Lucian walked the perimeter of the gas station, her head tilted upward. ‘She saw a couple of girls in a shiny SUV, hanging out in the back of our parking lot before we left. It didn’t take a lot of brainwork to put the rest together. Ezzie’s had the scent of groties on our tail for the last hour. When you two pulled off the Interstate, I got worried.’
I felt heat rise to my face. ‘Thanks for coming back.’
His expression softened somewhat. ‘I don’t reckon Sebastian would forgive me if I let you get yourself killed,’ he replied. ‘And since you’re obviously not going to listen to our advice about staying home, I’m offering you a place to stay in Savannah. The Corsi clan owns a B&B in the Victorian District. That’s where we’re heading.’
I nodded as Ezzie approached, ending our conversation.
‘Anything?’ Hugo asked.
‘No,’